Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	father_n	pray_v	son_n	6,693	5	5.8977	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A31405	A sermon preached in a country-audience on the late day of fasting and prayer, January 30 by a priest of the Church of England.	Cave, John, d. 1690.	1679 (1679)	Wing C1585; ESTC R36288	19,279	33

louder than the cry of mine against them After all this some perhaps may ignorantly alledge that of our blessed Saviour John 17.9 for a dispensation in this case if not for a contrary practice I pray for them I pray not for the world but for them which thou hast given me But we are not by these words to understand that our Saviour did wholly leave wicked men out of his prayers but he preferred his Apostles and faithful servants before them these were nearest his heart and peculiarly dear to him and as there are degrees in Gods kindness so may and ought there to be in our prayers whilest we pray for all men we are to pray more especially for some 1. For our kindred near relations and intimate friends With what ardency and transports of zeal Moses and St. Paul prayed for such we read Exod. 32.31 32. Rom. 9.3 2. For the Church of God for the whole congregation of Christian people The City of Jerusalem was heretofore honoured above all the Cities of the world by Gods placing his name there and by that solemn worship which was there performed to him when the Tribes came up thither thrice a year c. Upon which account it was a Type of the true Church and the whole company of Gods faithful people are called Zach. 12.1 Heb. 12.22 the house of Jacob and the inhabitants of Jerusalem The Heavenly Jerusalem And therefore they were to pray for the Church under this title Pray for the peace of Jerusalem Psalm 122.6 7. Peace be within thy walls and prosperity within thy Palaces c. The Lord would not have them hold their peace Isa 62.6 7. for Jerusalems sake nor give him any rest till he made it a praise in the earth And it was a most fervent and pathetical Prayer Dan. 9.16 that of Daniel's O Lord according to all thy righteousness let thine anger and fury be turned away from thy City Jerusalem thy holy Mountain because for the sins and the iniquity of our Fathers Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us And doubtless we under the Gospel have all reason to own the same or greater obligations to pray for the Peace and prosperity of the Church of God and if we are not wholly devoid of the spirit of Christianity we shall express a sympathy with our fellow members rejoycing with those that rejoyce and weeping with those that weep praying most affectionately for those of the same holy communion with our selves that God would be pleased to confirm them in his truth keep them sound in the faith succour them by his grace defend them by his power Ephes 1.17 18 19. Epes 1.3 4. deliver them from every evil work and preserve them to his heavenly Kingdom For this among others we have the example of our Apostle praying for the Churches Col. 4.3 1 Thes 5.25 as well as desiring their prayers for himself upon all occasions particularly when he foresaw that he should meet with enemies in Judea Rom. 15.30 31. This is left upon record as an honourable testimony of Epaphras his zeal for the Church and people of God That he laboured fervently for them in prayer Col. 4. 12 13. that they might stand perfect and compleat in all the will of God Obj. But it may be objected against this part of our discourse that there is no such need of praying for the Church because God hath undertaken to secure it promising Mat. 16.18 That the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it Answ It is true Christs Church shall never totally fail but no particular Churches ever had a Patent of perpetual preservation The decays and ruins of the Eastern Churches are a deplorable instance of the contrary and what hath been done to one Church may certainly be done to another what hath been done in Asia may be done in Europe Nor is that Church exempt which calleth her self the Mother and Queen of the rest but as she is fallen already in a sad degree from her first love from her truth and purity so may she soon be cast down from her pomp and glory And indeed when we consider her Apostasie from the Primitive Faith in many particulars we understand what great need there was of that early caution of the Apostle Be not high minded but fear Rom. 11.20 But to say no more of that now All Gods promises of not fayling and forsaking his people are made with this reserve that they do not wilfuly depart from him As the Prophet said unto Asa The Lord is with you while you are with him and if ye seek him he will be found of you 2 Chron. 15.20 but if you forsake him he will forsake you In which respect without naming any others at present we see there is great reason that in our prayers and supplications for all men we intercede especially for the Church of God in some such words as those of the Prophet Spare thy people Joel 2.17 O Lord and give not thine heritage to reproach 3. We must pray more especially for that part of the Church of God among our selves because a natural and a civil added to the Christian relation strengthens our obligation to this duty Psal 122.7 For my brethren and companions sake I will now say Peace be within thee We that are united in the same civil as well as religious interests must needs suffer or prosper together and therefore ought to unite in mutual intercessions to pray most affectionately for one another and the whole body of the kingdom Jere. 14.9 Zach. 2.5 Psal 147.3 That the God by whose name we are called would not leave us but be a wall of fire round about us and the glory in the midst of us that he would strengthen the bars of Sions gates and bless all her children within her That he would protect his ordinances maintain his truths among us and continue his gracious presence with us that he would preserve the beauty and stability of religious government that errours and heresies may not infest the Church nor injustice treachery rebellion disorder the State but that the Tabernacle and the Tribunals religion and policy may mutally support and adorn each other That our Jerusalem may be a City compacted and at union within it self that we may not by any trifling or peevish differences among our selves open a breach for the common enemy to enter in at but that we may stand fast in one-spirit Phil. 1.27 and with one mind striving together for the faith of the Gospel that we may contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the Saints that by all honest and orderly endeavours we may joyn together to defend and promote the religion of Christ and his Apostles the religion of the first and purest ages the religion which the Church of Rome hath so grosly corrupted the religion which the Church of England with others hath

or their power without much toil and disturbance And how great soever the wisdom and power the skill and activity of some Kings may be to facilitate and lighten the duties and burthen of their Empire we know to whose blessing they are indebted both for the one and the other 2 Sam. 22.40 even to that God who gave Solomon an understanding heart to judge his people and girded David with strength to battle to subdue those under him who rose up against him Now seeing these great blessings of Heaven are obtained and continued to Kings ordinarily by Prayer therefore in this respect they need our prayers more than any others do They do so also 2. In respect of their temptations their infirmities being the same with other Mens their checks and restraints less powerful their miscarriages of a publick influence The Devil the great enemy of all good will ply all his advantages against them the World lays all her baits before them shews them all her glory at once she will not let them want any supplies for their luxury any instruments for oppression and cruelty any furniture for Pride and Vanity nor any flatterers to colour and extenuate their Vices and shew them only the fair side of themselves Seeing then they are easily betrayed into sin they must needs want great supplies and succours of the Divine Grace to repel their temptations to secure their innocency or to pardon their errours and exorbitances and consequently many prayers to obtain this Grace to help them in their need 3. They are surrounded with many enemies and exposed to many dangers The height of their glory raiseth as much envy as admiration and makes them more obnoxious to the fury and violence of every storm How many ambitious and aspiring minds seek to greaten themselves by their diminution How many discontented spirits Sons of Belial impatient of the Yoke are trying all ways to throw off their rule and if they cannot advance themselves to bring them down and lay all level How many desperate Fortunes hope to repair themselves by a Kingdoms downfall We our selves have seen all this sadly exemplified and we can make no defense for the future equal to the danger without engaging his help by our prayers who giveth salvation unto Kings Psal 144.10 and sheweth mercy to his anointed 5. We are obliged to be more instant and importunate in our prayers for Kings because this is the most lawful and righteous way of remedying what is amiss in them and of redressing our grievances if we suffer by them we are not allowed to lift up our hand against them though it be in the maintenance of our own right Gods guard secures them more than their own Touch not mine anointed 1 Chron. 16.22 Though David himself had a fair Title to the Crown yet his heart smote him but for cutting off the skirt of Sauls garment and we know afterwards he caused the poor Amalekite to be smitten to death for having a hand in his blood though he could not so properly be said to kill 2 Sam. 1. as to dispatch him or in our ordinary way of speaking to put him out of his pain which in some cases would rather have been interpreted a kindness than a cruelty but this he did no doubt to shew how sacred and inviolate the persons and lives of Soveraign Princes ought to be Nay we are not allowed so much as to lift up our tongues against them in any murmurous complaints Where the word of a King is Eccles 8.4 there is power and who shall say to him what dost thou It is not only intolerable insolence but impiety in some cases to tell them of their faults Job 34.18 Is it fit saith Elihu to say to a King thou art wicked and to Princes ye are ungodly And as we must not speak evil to them so neither must we speak it of them behind their backs We must not reproach the footsteps of Gods anointed Psal 89.51 Exod. 22.28 nor speak evil of the ruler of our people Nay the prohibition reacheth further still and doth not only restrain us from expressing our dislikes of them and their government but from conceiving if possible at least wise from harbouring or cherishing any ill opinion of them in our own breasts Eccles 10.20 Curse not the King no not in thy thought They are accountable to God and to none but him for their misdemeanours those who arraign them at any other Bar invade the Divine Authority and do encroach upon Gods Prerogative as well as the Kings by a bold and daring impiety But it concerns us therefore the more to have recourse to God to seek relief from him by prayer humbly beseeching him to give the King his judgments to guide and direct him in all his ways Isa 60.17 to make his Officers peace and his exactours righteousness and this we must pray too with submission to Gods will and patiently waiting for his help rejoycing the mean while in the testimony of our consciences that we have used no indirect means to help our selves I have propounded these arguments in stead of many more to shew the reasonableness of this Christian duty of praying for Kings and all that are in Authority I shall now only add this to what hath hitherto been spoken in a more general way viz. That our present circumstances are such as do furnish some peculiar motives to this duty of praying for our own King As first of all 1. The great danger that he is in 2. The great need we have at this time of his fatherly care and prudent conduct 1. We cannot but apprehend him to be in great danger because those pernicious designs against his regal person and government seem yet to be but in part discovered because his enemies are such as pretend they have Right and Religion on their side A power to dispose of the Crowns and Lives of Princes to absolve Subjects from all Oaths of Allegiance to make Rebellion and Treason not only Lawful but Meritorious We must needs I say have very sad and serious apprehensions of the Kings danger when we consider that he is encompassed with such Malignant enemies whose Craft and Policy envenoms their Cruelty whose very Religion is more formidable than Pagan impiety and their Church in the worst sense terrible as an army with Banners It concerns us therefore most heartily to commend him to his Almighty and gracious protection Psal 18.50 Psal 33.10 who giveth great deliverances to his Kings who disappointeth the devices of the crafty so that their hands cannot perform their enterprize whose eyes are upon the ways of man and he seeth all his goings Job 34.21 Psal 132.2 before whom Hell is naked and destruction hath no covering humbly beseeching him to bring to light the hidden works of darkness Psal 10.2 and to take the wicked in the devices that they have imagined to cloath all his enemies with